Issue 22, 2021

Designing Zn-doped nickel sulfide catalysts with an optimized electronic structure for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract

Designing non-noble-metal electrocatalysts with excellent performance and economic benefits toward the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is extremely crucial for future energy development. In particular, the rational cationic-doped strategy can effectively tailor the electronic structure of the catalysts and improve the free energy of the adsorbed intermediate, thus enhancing HER performance. Herein we reported Zn-doped Ni3S2 nanosheet arrays supported on Ni foam (Zn-Ni3S2/NF) that were synthesized by a two-step hydrothermal process for improving HER catalysis under alkaline conditions. Remarkably, the obtained Zn-Ni3S2/NF displays excellent HER catalytic performance with an overpotential of 78 mV to reach a current density of 10 mA cm−2 and dramatic long-term stability for 18 h in 1 M KOH. In addition, the results based on the density functional theory calculations reveal that Zn dopants can modulate the electronic structure of Ni3S2 and optimize the hydrogen adsorption free energy (ΔGH*). Thus cationic-doping engineering provides an efficient method to enhance the intrinsic activities of transition-metal sulfides, which may contribute to the development of nonprecious electrocatalysts for HER.

Graphical abstract: Designing Zn-doped nickel sulfide catalysts with an optimized electronic structure for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
18 Mar 2021
Accepted
10 May 2021
First published
11 May 2021

Nanoscale, 2021,13, 10127-10132

Designing Zn-doped nickel sulfide catalysts with an optimized electronic structure for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction

W. He, H. Liu, J. Cheng, J. Mao, C. Chen, Q. Hao, J. Zhao, C. Liu, Y. Li and L. Liang, Nanoscale, 2021, 13, 10127 DOI: 10.1039/D1NR01726H

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements